Here's to wine!

Ask Gary Vaynerchuk what most people think of wines produced in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, and he's brutally honest.

"They think it's junk," says Vaynerchuk, a New Jersey native and author of Gary Vaynerchuk's 101 Wines: Guaranteed to Inspire, Delight, and Bring Thunder to Your World. He's also the expert behind the wildly popular www.winelibrarytv.com wine video blog.

And local wine festivals? "They think you're going for the experience but the wines won't be that good."

Those views no longer hold, Vaynerchuk says. As the wineries themselves age, they're producing better beverages, and reaching more people interested in local products.

To get the best of what's good and local, just ask, he advised. "Let the winery tell you what they're most proud of," Vaynerchuk suggests. "You should really give it a shot. It's all in expanding your palate."

Many of the festivals are family-friendly and allow discounts for designated drivers. Here are a half-dozen wine festivals where you can do just that.

Five wineries and five cheese artisans paired their wines and cheeses for this Saturday event in northeastern Pennsylvania - one that organizers hope will become an annual festival. Lactose intolerant? Other eateries, like Beach Lake Bread, Yoder's Bakery, and Philadelphia Water Ice, are participating, too, so you will find appropriate food and drink matches, whether you're a cheese head or not.

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The trick to enjoying Brandywine's harvest festival is figuring out how to get to as much of it as possible - the wine trail covers eight wineries and a 50-mile radius, and the festival stretches over two weekends, beginning this weekend and continuing Oct. 3 and 4. Your best bet is to check out the Brandywine Valley Wine Trail Web site (bvwinetrail.com) to see what each vineyard offers, but these things you can count on: local wines, local foods, a lot of local music.

You can't get more local than the Oct. 4 Vendemmia Festival in South Philadelphia, which showcases homemade wine. About 120 home winemakers put their vintages into the festival's competition, now in its 13th year. Wine merchants provide samples, too. Last year's festival ran through about 200 gallons of the stuff, and the crowd grows each year. It doesn't have an end time, either - "it ends when people get tired," says Gerard V. Vernose, founder and chair of the festival.

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To taste wine from its beginnings, check out this festival on Oct. 10 and 11. Participating wineries celebrate the grape harvest by offering tastings of fresh-pressed grape juice that will become wine, and of newly fermented wines. If you're drinking just the fresh-pressed juice, you can cover every winery within about an hour of driving time, according to Michelle Greco, public relations manager of the Bucks County Conference & Visitors Bureau. Each winery hosts specialized events. To check out what they will uncork for the festival, go to buckscountywinetrail.com.

This third annual event may be located in the far southern reaches of New Jersey, but it draws wineries from all over the state to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal, this year on Oct. 10 and 11. Sponsored by the Garden State Wine Growers Association, the Cape May Wine Festival is a waterfront event offering food and music as well as wine. Bring a blanket or folding chair if you want to hang out on the lawn as you sip and nosh in the Delaware Bay breezes.

Ten wineries in York, Lancaster, Harrisburg, and Gettysburg - collectively called the UnCork York Wine Trail - are coming together for this new event, Nov. 20 to 22. It takes visitors behind the scenes to see how wine is made, from the grape on the vine to bottling. You can sample fresh-pressed wine, too, to taste the difference before and after aging.

Wayne County Wine & Cheese Festival, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Wayne County Fairgrounds in Honesdale, Pa. Tickets: $15, $25 day of event, $5 for designated drivers and those under 21. Information: 570-836-7222, nepawinecountry.com/wayne-county.

Brandywine Valley Wine Trail Harvest Festival, Saturday and Sunday and Oct. 3 and 4 at locations in the Brandywine Valley. Tickets: $25. Information: 610-444-3842, bvwinetrail.com.

Vendemmia Festival, 2 to 6 p.m. Oct. 4, Vendemmia Square, 2000 Pattison Ave. Tickets: $40. Information: 215-551-3859, vendemmiafoundation.org.

Bucks County Wine Trail Harvest Celebration, Oct. 10 and 11 at various locations. Ticket prices vary. Information: 215-639-0300, buckscountywinetrail.com

Cape May Wine Festival, noon to 5 p.m. Oct. 10 and 11, rain date Oct. 12, Cape May-Lewes Ferry Terminal, 1200 Lincoln Blvd., Cape May. Tickets: $20 age 21 and older, $10 for those not drinking, free under 21. Information: 609-884-5404. newjerseywines.com.

Wine Just Off the Vine, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Nov. 20 and 22 at locations in and around York County, Pa. Tickets: $10. Information: 1-888-858-9675, uncorkyork.com.

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